Dan Ives Just Slashed His Price Target on Tesla Stock By 43%. How Should You Play TSLA Here?

Tesla (TSLA) shares are down nearly 6% as of this writing after analyst Dan Ives of Wedbush Securities trimmed his price target on the electric vehicle manufacturer by a concerning 43%. 

CEO Elon Musk’s involvement in politics has created a “brand crisis” that, together with an emerging trade war, could mean significant continued pressure on TSLA, he told clients in a new research note. 

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Down some 45% versus its year-to-date high, Tesla stock is now trading at a price that was last seen before election day. 

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China’s Retaliatory Tariffs Could Hurt Tesla Stock

Ives lowered his price target on TSLA stock this morning primarily because the EV maker could take a significant hit as China implements its 34% retaliatory tariffs on American products on April 10. 

That’s because Tesla currently generates more than 20% of its annual revenue from China. 

According to the Wedbush analyst, Beijing’s retaliatory tariffs could make a Tesla vehicle more expensive for its domestic buyers, which could potentially drive them to local alternatives, including BYD (BYDDY), Nio (NIO), and Xpeng (XPEV). 

Investors should note that Tesla is already struggling to keep up with its rivals. Last month, China’s BYD reported well over $100 billion in revenue for 2024 – a milestone that TSLA is yet to achieve. 

TSLA Is Struggling With Self-Created Brand Issues

Wedbush’s downwardly revised price target on Tesla stock continues to indicate more than 35% upside from current levels. 

However, analyst Dan Ives estimates the EV maker “has lost/destroyed at least 10% of its future customer base globally based on self-created brand issues.”

Plus, he argued that his estimate could, in fact, prove conservative, which hardly inspires confidence in buying TSLA shares despite their massive year-to-date decline either. 

The aforementioned brand crisis was evident in Tesla’s Q1 deliveries. Last week, the multinational said it delivered a total of 336,681 vehicles in the first quarter – down 13% versus the same quarter last year. 

Analysts Continue to Trim Price Targets on Tesla

Note that analysts have steadily lowered their price targets on Tesla shares in 2025. 

However, the mean target on the EV stock still sits at about $320 that indicates potential upside of nearly 40% from here. 

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On the date of publication, Wajeeh Khan did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.